Tuesday, December 22, 2009

Dinner with Industry was organised by the Bright Futures Society at Swansea Universitybringing students and businesses together and helping students to learn life skills and find possible work experience and potential employers. The event was really successful and organised mainly by Angharad Williams who managed to pull the whole event together with her team so that the evening went without any hitch.

Students circulated during the meal, spending time on one table for the starter, moving on to another for the main course and so on. They had the opportunity to meet and talk with several local business people.

Between courses there were speakers including Fiona Miller of Wicked Trips who spoke about her experiences in buying her business and how she is progressing since she left Swansea University in the summer. She was an inspiration to all of us. Ollie the Street Poet recited some of his work including a special poem he'd written for the night. I was honoured to be asked to speak and when did couldn't understand why Angharad kept doing some sort of winding-up movement with her arms. I obviously ignored her attempt to mime cranking up a car!

About 120 guests were present made up of around 90 students and 30 businesses.

There were a number of sponsors including Swansea University but the main sponsor was the Uplands Diner who stepped in at the last minute. They also brought along some well-know guests who all made their own donation.

I do hope that this becomes a regular event and is carried on by new committees as time progresses and that they gain some valuable experience. It would be good too if there were other meetings between the students and business people thriough the year to build up better realtions and understanding.

Here is a slide show of photos taken by Gareth Danks of Life Photography Wales who always comes up with great shots. He kindly worked during the evening before and between courses for free and I thank him for his continuing support on his second Dinner with Industry event.

Sunday, December 06, 2009

Christmas is just around the corner. The City lights are up, shops are crowded, frosty mornings await us. And now is the time to make the most of Carrie, your card. Here are just a few new offers.

LATE! LATE! SPECIAL!!Order 500 business cards. Full colour double sided 400gsm laminated just 25 pounds, payment with order from you artwork. Limited offer until 18th December. Valid in the Swansea, Neath & Port Talbot and Llanelli areas only for free delivery. Other areas call 07976 364681.

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Get an extra 10% when you dine at Zaal Indian Restaurant on a Tuesday. So that is a total of 20% off your food bill plus free coffees when you go to Sketty Cross and eat at Zaal's. Highly recommended and in fact now taking votes for the Curry House of the Year. Watch here for details of how you can vote.

Are you a sportsman? H Sports in the Uplands are pleased to offer 10% of full priced goods. So if you are looking for sports equipment and in particular cricket and bowls then zip down to their shop and talk with Matthew who will be pleased to help you. With his experience he'll be able to give you sound professional advice too.

In fact he has some great information about bat care on his site. "To get the best performance from your bat, there are certain procedures that manufacturers recommend and pitfalls to be avoided if possible.

Bat willow is soft and light, but hardens when subjected mechanically to pressing rollers. Naturally, because it is a soft wood the condition of the bat will deteriorate during usage. Bats can be seriously damaged by a Yorker i.e. when the ball is trapped between the bat and the ground, causing the willow to split diagonally at the toe.

If the ball strikes the edge of the bat with sufficient force, heavy impact damage may occur. Water penetrating the toe may cause the pressing to lift and if action is not taken immediately, the toe can be easily damaged by striking the ball or simply by heavy tapping at the crease.

Some small cracks are bound to occur on the bat, due to wear and tear, but these will not affect its performance."read more click here.

And whilst you are up in the Uplands and Sketty drop into the Gower Road Car Wash on Gowwer Road, just above Sketty Cross and get you car washed or fully valeted. Use your card and get a 10% discount.

Get your card today and start saving. Become a merchant and get that extra business. The card works and you'll be building up loyalty.

The Local Business Card has just been launched and is now available as a franchise.

If you are looking for a business opportunity then this might be for you. You should look at the criteria before applying. There are opportunities right now in all cities except Carmarthen and Lincoln but this isn't going to be for long.

Is this you:

You are looking for a full or part-time opportunity but can devote at least 8 hours a week during normal working times

You want to work from home or your office

You like networking and meeting people

You don't like selling but enjoy helping others

You want a business that you can build up gradually and that will give you an on-going income

You don't like a lot of paperwork

You'd like a system with the back-up and support to make life easy

You want to work with like-minded people who want to succeed

You know nothing is for free or easy but are willing to work hard to get your business set up

You don't want a high franchise cost

If you answered "Yes" to the above then this is a great opportunity to build up a long-lasting business that doesn't involve a lot of paperwork (in fact it's practically nil), is involved in helping local companies make more business and profit without big costs, and is ready to go.

The Local Business Card is just a tenner per year and gets you discounts and special offers from a whole range of shops, hairdressers, clubs restaurants and much more. Traders pay less than 60p a day to be on your local directory and be in the weekly newsletter that goes out to all card-holders. It is working in Swansea where it has just been launched and soon in Carmarthen and Lincoln. If you have loads of business contacts and good friends you'll be able to grow this business easily and fast. It is expected that will be excellent. Call for a breakdown if you'd like to be considered as a Franchisee. Interested?

Just call or text on 07976 364681e-mail ask@localbusinesscard.co.uk

Do it now for full no obligation details.

Please note that we can't guarantee earning but we know the secret of making this work.

Wednesday, December 02, 2009

We felt Carrie needed to be a bit feminine to match her name. I'm really pleased with the result and you'll be seeing a lot more of her.

Meanwhile we've had some really great press cover in both the Evening Post and Western Mail. As you can see below, the Post included a great photo. Written by Emma Jones it will certainly help promote the card which can only be good for both consumers and merchants.

Having a great idea and seeing it come together as one that will benefit everyone is really rewarding and I'm hopeful that it'll grow not only in Swansea but National.

And today I see the article is included in the free paper, so that's gone out to over 60,ooo homes in the Swansea area. It's been interesting in that so many people saty they don't read the paper but everyone has seen the article.

Your comments are really appreciated so do write what you think about Carrie. Feedback is so important if we are to get this right. And that's where you come in. Please leave a comment and equally important sign up and save.